Cheery Chid is coming to Dartmouth! The Royal Navy minehunter HMS Chiddingfold will arrive on Tuesday January 30 for a two-day visit.

Officer Cadets under training at the town's Britannia Royal Naval College will be invited on board to take a look at the technology and hear about the part the Hunt-class minehunters play in operational capability. Lt James Carpenter, HMS Chiddingfold’s Executive Officer, said: “The visit will be a great opportunity to demonstrate to potential young officers the importance of mine warfare and diving within the Royal Navy and present the prospects available to them for an exciting future career on mine countermeasures vessels.

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"The Ship’s Company is very much looking forward to the visit. For the Officers it’s always good to come back to where it all began and for the rest of the crew it will be a pleasure to visit this vibrant harbour town so rich in Naval history.”

HMS Chiddingfold (Image: UK MOD Crown Copyright)

HMS Chiddingfold is one of eight ships that make up the Second Mine Countermeasures Squadron. The ship returned to her home port of Portsmouth from a three-year deployment to the Gulf last September, where she had been protecting vital sea lanes. While the 42 crew on board rotate every six to eight months, the ship itself was operating from Bahrain throughout the period.

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Lt Carpenter said: “Since returning to the UK, the ship has been conducting exercises around the south coast. These vary from seamanship drills such as man overboard exercises to fire exercises and mine countermeasures and gunnery drills off the coast of the Isle of Wight. A large number of the Ship’s Company has changed since the return to the UK and these exercises have helped them hone their skills since joining.”

‘Cheery Chid’, as the ship is affectionately known, was built by Vosper Thorneycroft and was launched in 1983. She was commissioned into the Royal Navy the following year.